Expand your medical studies and gain surgical experience with an overseas elective in surgery. We offer two types of grants for UK based medical students who are looking to pursue a surgical career, and planning an overseas elective in surgery.

The RCS England Elective Prizes are awards of up to £500 for medical students planning to undertake an elective in surgery abroad during the academic year 2026/2027.

The PKK & SK Elective Fellowships are two awards of up to £1,000 each for medical students planning to undertake an elective in surgery in India, during the academic year 2026/2027. 

Funding amount

Up to £1,000.

Deadline

Applications are currently open, and will close on 9 September 2026.

Please note all our grants and fellowships are reviewed annually before going live, so the information on this page may be subject to change before the next round opens.

Duration

The funding may be used flexibly across the duration of an elective attachment.

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We recommend you read the information below fully before starting an application.

Eligibility 

To apply for one of our elective fellowships, you must:

• be a UK based medical student;
• be an affiliate member in good standing of the College;
• be undertaking your elective attachment in surgery abroad during the 2026/27 academic year;
• have the support of a consultant surgeon where your elective will be undertaken, who can offer facilities and technical assistance for research in the appropriate field;
• not have received elective funding from RCS England before.

If successful, you must remain in good standing order with your membership fees throughout the length of the fellowship.

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About our Elective grants

We offer two types of grant funding for medical students planning to pursue a career in surgery and undertake an elective in surgery aboard:

• The RCS England Elective Prizes are awards up to £500 for medical students planning to undertake an elective in surgery abroad.

• The PKK and SK Elective Fellowships are two awards of up to £1000 each for medical students planning to undertake an elective in surgery in India.

Awards are made competitively and may be used flexibly to support your elective, for the purpose described in your application form.

What’s expected from grant holders

We award elective grants on the understanding that you, your host centre, and supervisor agree to the Terms and Conditions relating to the scheme and any amendments issued during the course of the award. You will be responsible for ensuring your travel and elective position is confirmed.

Additionally, you will be expected to:

• undertake your project within the academic year of the award date;
• only use your grant funding for the project detailed in the application form and identified on the award letter, not for personal salaries;
• notify us of any proposed changes to your project, supervisor (or wider circumstances) from the application, at which point further guidance will be provided;
• advise us if you are awarded any additional funding to support the visit;
• remain in good standing order with your RCS England membership fees throughout the tenure of the award.

You will be expected to provide a report for inclusion in our surgical research report at the end of your elective period.

What you’ll gain from the grant 

These grants give you the opportunity to study surgery abroad and learn from international surgeons, furthering your skills and knowledge.

The grant of up to £1,000 may be used flexibly to support your elective, for the purpose described in your application form.

How to apply 

You can apply by completing the application form on our research funding portal. Select 2026/27 Elective grants from the list of available grants. 

Before you start

The form has four sections. These cover your details, basic eligibility, organisation, and proposed research project.

You will also be asked to upload to the portal:

• two-page CV;
• confirmation of acceptance of your elective;
• a letter of support from the consultant surgeon where the elective attachment will be;
• undertaken confirming supervision of the project;
• a letter of support from a consultant surgeon or dean of your medical school;
• confirmation from the Head of Department at the Institute you are visiting.

It is your responsibility to make sure every part of the application is complete and submitted by the deadline. You can save your application and return to it at any time. 

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What happens next

We check every application against the eligibility criteria, and put each one through an independent peer review process. Applications are ranked and awarded based on the combined peer review scores and comments.

We will advise applicants of the grant outcome in December.

If successful, you will be asked to sign the grant terms and conditions. Award payments will be made directly to you.

You will be expected to provide a report for inclusion in our surgical research report once you have completed your project.

Contact us

If you have any questions about applying for an elective grant, please email research@rcseng.ac.uk and we’ll be happy to help.

How this grant is funded

RCS England Elective Prizes are possible thanks to the kind donations of the Preiskel family.

The PKK and SK elective fellowships are made possible thanks to the kind donations of the PKK and SK family.